THE MINES AND MINERALS ACT - EI SourceBook

1 CHAPTER 213 THE MINES AND MINERALS ACT ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title 2. Interpretation 3. Rights to MINERALS vested in the President PART II MINING RIGHTS GENERALLY 4. Acquisition of mining rights 5. Authority required for prospecting or mining 6. Types of mining rights 7. Certain persons disqualified from holding mining rights 8. Restrictions on mining rights 9. Development agreements 10. Priority of applications for mining rights 11. Survey of land PART III LARGE-SCALE MINING OPERATIONS prospecting Licences 12. Rights conferred by prospecting licence 13. Application for prospecting licence 14. Grant of prospecting licence 15. Renewal of prospecting licence 16. Obligations of holder of prospecting licence 17. Removal of MINERALS Retention Licences 18. Rights conferred by retention licence 19. Application for retention licence 20. Grant of retention licence 21. Renewal of retention licence 22. Cancellation of retention licence Large-Scale Mining Licences 23.

2 Rights conferred by large-scale mining licence 24. Application for large-scale mining licence 25. Grant of large-scale mining licence 26. Renewal of large-scale mining licence 27. Obligations of holder of large scale mining licence 28. Suspension of production PART IV SMALL-SCALE MINING OPERATIONS prospecting Permits 29. Rights conferred by prospecting permit 30. Application for prospecting permit 31. Grant of prospecting permit 32. Obligation to give notice of discovery 33. Removal of MINERALS Small-Scale Mining Licences 34. Rights conferred by small-scale mining licence 35. Application for small-scale mining licence 36. Grant of small-scale mining licence 37. Renewal of small-scale mining licence 38. Obligations of holder of small-scale mining licence 39. Requirement to convert small-scale mining licence to large-scale mining licence Gemstone Licences 40. Rights conferred by gemstone licence 41. Application for gemstone licence 42. Grant of gemstone licence 43.

3 Renewal of gemstone licence 44. Obligation to give notice of discovery 45. Requirement to convert gemstone licence to large-scale mining licence PART V VARIATION, ETC., OF LICENCES AND PERMITS 46. Amendment of terms of licence or permit 47. Alteration of prospecting area 48. Enlargement of mining area 49. Abandonment of land subject to licence or permit 50. Suspension or cancellation of licence or permit 51. Termination of small-scale mining licence for insufficient production 52. Termination of gemstone licence for insufficient production 53. Transitional extension of licences or permits pending certain applications 54. Transfer of licence or permit 55. Transfer of control of company PART VI MINING RIGHTS AND SURFACE RIGHTS 56. Restriction of rights of entry by holder of licence or permit 57. Rights under licence or permit to be exercised reasonably 58. Right to graze stock 59. Acquisition by holder of licence or permit of rights over land 60. Arbitration of disputes 61.

4 Compensation for disturbance of rights, etc. PART VII ARTISANAL MININGPART Section 62. Rights conferred by artisan's mining right 63. Application for artisan's mining right 64. Grant of artisan's mining right 65. Rights to building materials PART VIII ROYALTIES AND CHARGES Royalties 66. Royalties on production of large-scale mining licence 66A. Commissioner General to be responsible for royalties 66B. Returns and assessments 67. Remission and deferment of royalties 68. Provisional assessment of royalty 69. Prohibition on disposal of MINERALS Other Charges 70. Annual charge in respect of licences under Part III 71. Charge for prospecting permit 72. Rent for small-scale mining licences 73. Rent and deemed turnover in respect of gemstone licence 74. Charge for artisan's mining right PART IX ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 75. Environment to be considered when granting mining rights 76. Conditions for the protection of the environment 77. Direction to comply with conditions of mining rights 78.

5 Rehabilitation by Director of Mine Safety at holder's expense 79. Clearing away of mining plant 80. Sale of mining plant 81. Wasteful practices 82. Environmental Protection Fund PART X ADMINISTRATION 83. Appointment of Director and other officers 84. Execution and delegation of powers and functions of Director and other officers 85. Recovery of fees 86. Geological services 87. Geological survey, mapping and prospecting on behalf of the Republic 88. Mining Advisory Committee 89. Disclosure of information 90. Indemnity PART XI APPEALS 91. Appeals against decisions of the local office 92. Appeals against decisions of the Director 93. Appeals in relation to licences under Part III 94. Appeals in relation to insurance 95. Notification of decisions PART XII INVESTMENT INCENTIVES 96. Relief from income tax 97. Relief from customs and excise duties 98. (Repealed by Act No. 1 of 1997) PART XIII MISCELLANEOUS 99.

6 Gemstone sales certificate 100. Radioactive MINERALS 101. Insurance and indemnities 102. Obstruction of holder of mining right 103. Production of information 104. Reports, records and information 105. Power of entry by Director 106. Miscellaneous offences 107. Offence committed by a body corporate 108. Regulations 109. Repeal of Cap. 329 of the 1971 edition and savings 110. SCHEDULES CHAPTER 213 MINES AND MINERALS Act No. 31 of 1995 41 of 1996 1 of 1997 8 of 1997 Statutory Instrument 166 off 1995 An Act to make provision with respect to prospecting for and mining MINERALS ; to repeal the MINES and MINERALS Act; and to provide for matters connected with or incidental to the foregoing. [13th September, 1995] PART I PRELIMINARY Short title 1. This Act may be cited as the MINES and MINERALS Act.* * The MINES and MINERALS Act came into operaion on 1st November, 1995 (Statutory Instrument No.)

7 166 of 1995). Interpretation 2. (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires- "access agreement" means an agreement entered into between the holder of a mining right and any owner or occupier of land over which the right subsists, for the regulation of prospecting , mining or other activities authorised by the mining right to be carried on upon the land; "artisan's mining right" means an artisan's mining right granted under Part VII; "building MINERALS " means MINERALS and rocks commonly used for building, road making or agricultural purposes and includes sand, clay, gravel, laterite, limestone, granite, phyllite and any other rock when so used; "development agreement" means an agreement entered into under section nine in relation to a large-scale mining licence; "Director" means the Director of MINES appointed under section eighty-three; "gemstone licence" means a gemstone licence granted under Part IV; "gemstone sales certificate" means a gemstone sales certificate granted under Part XIII; "gemstones" means amethyst, aquamarine, beryl, corundum, diamond, emerald, garnet, ruby, sapphite, topaz, tourmaline and any other non-matellic mineral substance, being a substance used in the manufacture of jewellery, that the Minister, by statutory instrument, declares to be a gemstone for the purposes of this Act; "holder" means the person in whose name a mining right is registered; "large-scale mining licence" means a large-scale mining licence granted under Part III; "local office", means an office of the Ministry established for any area.

8 "mine" means any place, pit, shaft, drive, level or other excavation, and any drift, gutter, lead, vein, lode, reef, saltpan or working, in or on or by means of which any operation connected with mining is carried on, together with all buildings, premises, erections and appliances, whether above or below the ground, that are used in connection with any such operation or for the extraction, treatment or preparation of any mineral or for the purpose of dressing mineral ores; " mineral " means any material substance, whether in solid, liquid, or gaseous form, that occurs naturally in or beneath the surface of the earth, but does not include water, petroleum or any substance or thing prescribed by the Minister by regulation; "mining" means the extraction of material, whether solid, liquid or gaseous from land or from beneath the surface of the earth in order to win MINERALS , and includes any operations directly or indirectly necessary or incidental thereto; "Mining Advisory Committee" means the Mining Advisory Committee established by section eighty-eight; "mining area" means an area of land subject to a licence or permit under this Act or an interim licence held under the Fourth Schedule that confers rights similar to the rights conferred by such a licence or permit; "mining operations" means operations carried out in the course of mining; "mining plant" means any building, plant, machinery equipment, tools or other property that has been used for mining, whether or not affixed to land, but does not include any timber or other material used or applied in the construction or support of any shaft, drive, gallery, terrace, race, dam or other work; "mining right" means a licence or permit, or an artisan's mining right, granted under this Act or any interim licence held under the Fourth Schedule; "petroleum" has the meaning ascribed to it in the Petroleum Act but does not include coal or oil shale.

9 Cap. 435 "preliminary investigation rights" means rights granted under the proviso to subsection (1) of section five; "prospect" means to search for any mineral by any means and to carry out such works, and remove such samples, as may be necessary to test the mineral -bearing qualities of any land; " prospecting area" means an area of land subject to a prospecting licence, a prospecting permit or an interim licence held under the Fourth Schedule that confers prospecting rights; " prospecting licence" means a prospecting licence granted under Part III; " prospecting operations" means operations carried out in the course of prospecting ; " prospecting permit" means a prospecting permit granted under Part IV; "retention licence" means a retention licence granted under Part IV; "royalty" means royalty chargeable under Parts III and VIII on the produce of a large-scale mining licence; "small-scale mining licence" means a small-scale mining licence granted under Part IV; (2) A reference, in any provision of this Act, to an authorised officer is a reference to a public officer, designated under section eight-three, who is duly authorised to exercise and perform the powers and functions conferred or imposed by that provision on an authorised officer.

10 (3) A reference in this Act to land subject to a mining right is a reference to an area of land in respect of which a mining right has been granted and subsists. 3. (1) All rights of ownership in, searching for, and mining and disposing of, MINERALS are hereby vested in the President on behalf of the Republic. Rights to MINERALS vested in the President (2) The provisions of this section have effect notwithstanding any right, title or interest which any person may possess in or over the soil in, on or under which MINERALS are found PART II MINING RIGHTS GENERALLY Acquisition of mining rights 4. Subject to the other provisions of this Act, rights of prospecting for, mining and disposing of, MINERALS may be acquired and held under and in accordance with this Act. Authority required for prospecting or mining 5. (1) A person shall not prospect for MINERALS or carry on mining operations except under the authority of a mining right granted under this Act: Provided that the Director may, for a period not exceeding ninety days, grant in writing, subject to such conditions (including conditions relating to work and expenditure), as the director may impose, the right to enter any area that is not subject to a mining right, or undertake an aerial survey, for the purpose of reconnaissance operations for the location of MINERALS by geophysical, geochemical and photogeological survey or by the study of surface geology.